The coveted Hermès Birkin bag is a safer investment than gold — and several rare editions are being auctioned off by Christie’s

‘It’s not a bag, it’s a Birkin.’

This is the chastisement Samantha Jones received from a self-satisfied retail worker in Sex and the City when she was thwarted in her attempts to purchase the aforementioned bag. For the designer arm decor, in the episode, there is a five year waiting list and a $4,000 price tag.

Back in the early 2000s, viewers gawped at the exclusivity and the cost of a handbag. Today, at Christie’s online auction, a limited edition 2018 offering from Hermès is estimated to set you back by about six times what Samantha was willing to pay.

So, what’s the fuss over a couple of old bags? In short: they are exclusive and well made. ‘The Paris Edit’ features more than 280 handbags, mainly from the French luxury fashion house, which was established in 1837. Hermès started life as a humble harness workshop, but this month overtook LVMH, whose brands include Louis Vuitton and Dior, to become Europe's largest luxury company.

But why are its bags — including the Birkin, Kelly bags, and Herbags — so valuable? It’s likely predominantly due to their rarity. As Samantha found out the hard way, it’s pretty difficult to just walk into a shop and buy a brand new Hermès. Lucile Andrenai, the Head of the Handbags Department EMEA at Christie’s calls them ‘some of the most coveted pieces in the world of handbags’. And it’s this rare status that increases their value. Some have described it as a Veblen good.

The One Two Three and Away We Go Birkin 25, for example, is one of the most expensive items up for auction. It brings to mind the contrasting colours, patterns and shapes one is advised to paint a baby’s nursery walls with, in order to stimulate their brain development. Designed by Nigel Peake and said to evoke ‘both a sailboat carried by the wind and the Grand Roue de la Concorde Ferris wheel’, it’s not to my tastes, but is nevertheless utterly unique. Christie’s expects it to sell for €18,000-€24,000.

However, not all collaborations with the brand remain so valuable. A Kelly bag, graffitied with the word ‘love’ by Speedy Graphito has, ironically, not been receiving much so far online. At the time of writing it has just one bid — the same amount, although in euros not dollars, that Samantha Jones’ was willing to pay in Sex in the City.

The Crocodile Porosus Midas Kelly 25, adorned with a gold inset — a direct reference to the mythical greedy ruler — is estimated to sell somewhere between €200,000-€300,000.

Another reason for the bags’ popularity is their history. The Kelly bag was renamed after Grace Kelly, who was photographed with one in 1956, which catapulted it into the fashion stratosphere. The Birkin owes its name to another silver screen starlet, Jane Birkin. She became the namesake of the iconic accessory when, on a flight to London, everything fell out of her handbag. The man sitting next to her said she should have one with pockets to which she replied: ‘The day Hermès makes one with pockets I will have that.’ That man was Jean-Louis Dumas, then the chairman and artistic director of Hermès. Thus, the Birkin was born.

Interestingly, this naming has not been without some controversy. Notably, in 2015, Birkin wrote a public letter to the brand, requesting that her name be removed. She wanted the bags made out of crocodile skin to be ‘debaptised’ until ‘better practices in line with international norms can be put in place’ for how Hermès acquired crocodile skin, which had come under fire from PETA. But, later that year, the brand said that they had satisfied the actress of its ‘profound respect for nature’, and that it was ethically treating crocodiles slaughtered to provide skin for the bags. One Birkin bag can take up to three crocodiles to manufacture.

The price for a 2026 Porsche 911 starts at £103,700, around the amount Christie’s expects the Faubourg Birkin Day to go for. Many would say, as an investment, the latter has far fewer risks attached, even though the 911 model has an enviable — for a sports car at least — average depreciation rate of 19.5% over five years. Birkins, however, normally appreciate in value and there are only 200,000 in circulation. After the influencer Janice Joostema had her £10,000 Birkin stolen from a London dressing room towards the end of last year, it’s clear that the Hermès bags remain coveted, and not only in the auction houses.

Christie's online sale is open until April 29 and is open to public viewing from April 24-29, in Paris, France.